The head of the Non-Governmental Schools Organization announced the closure of the Gaj educational institute due to 'bias' in events from last year. Ahmad Mahmoudzadeh made this announcement last night on a television program and requested that the state broadcaster refrain from airing advertisements for this institute. This government official stated: 'The Gaj educational institute had designed questions [in literature] for students during last year's unrest that had a directional bias and incited towards disturbances, and thus it was closed.' During the peak of the protests in 2022, Gaj took a supportive stance towards the people and used critical and heroic poetry relevant to the conditions of those days in one of its exams. This led to the Farhikhtegan newspaper publishing an article on Tuesday, December 13, titled 'Exam Entrepreneurs Show No Mercy to Poetry and Iran,' labeling the poems from the institute's exam on Friday, December 9, as 'targeted and dark' and attacking this collection. The questions that some Iranian media reported caused the closure of the Gaj institute. This newspaper, affiliated with Azad University, emphasized that these poems 'were said during a specific period but were purposefully compiled, and certainly, the person responsible for designing the questions selected these poems for the exam with a particular perspective.' One of the referenced poems was by Mohammad Farrokhi Yazdi, a famous poet and journalist from the Constitutional Era. A part of the poems from this exam was: 'In the shadow of despotism, freedom withered / This young flower should not be uprooted / If no action can be taken from the selection / Tell the son of Kaveh to think of revolution.'
Closure of Educational Institute 'Gaj' Due to Allegedly 'Biased' Questions
The Gaj educational institute was closed due to allegedly biased exam questions that incited unrest during last year's protests. Ahmad Mahmoudzadeh, a government official, announced this on television, criticizing the institute's use of critical poetry. This incident highlights the ongoing tensions between educational institutions and the government in Iran.
👥 Key Players
📰 What Happened
The Gaj educational institute was closed by the government due to allegations of bias in exam questions that were seen as inciting unrest during last year's protests. Ahmad Mahmoudzadeh publicly criticized the institute for its use of politically charged poetry in exams.
- The closure was announced on a state television program.
- The institute's exam included poetry that was critical of the government and relevant to recent protests.
💡 Why It Matters
📚 Background
In recent years, Iran has seen significant protests against the government, leading to increased scrutiny of educational institutions and their content. The use of poetry and literature in exams has become a contentious issue.
🏷️ Entities Mentioned
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Translation confidence: 85%